Pakistan's Economy since 1999

Abstract

Military governments in Pakistan and elsewhere claim legitimacy based on superior economic management and the pretext for assuming power is usually corruption and economic mismanagement of incumbent political regimes. Ever since the current military government seized power in Pakistan in October 1999, it has, like earlier military governments, claimed to have turned the economy around citing selective statistics. A more careful and comprehensive review of the same statistics suggests that this claim is exaggerated. Also, like past military governments, this one has ignored investing in people, and the human condition as measured by unemployment and poverty has worsened and as measured by other social indicators the progress has notably slackened. Most now agree that improving the human condition is a necessary condition for robust and sustainable economic growth and by this criterion the military government has not done well.